With the upcoming schedule firmly in place, Kirsten will arrive next month to take charge. He’s even refused to bargain with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for a place of residence in Mumbai, the city where he prefers to stay. Instead, Kirsten has indicated that he’ll be more than happy living off a suitcase. His family, at least initially, will be flying in and out of the country as and when they can. On Tuesday, after he met up with the BCCI officials to revise the finer details of his contract and spoke to Test captain Anil Kumble, Kirsten told The Indian Express what to expect from him once he takes charge.

Excerpts:
The much-talked about Indian Premier League (IPL) seems to have dulled the fact that you’re finally arriving...
The IPL has definitely been making a lot of news and maybe for the good of the game. But I have my priorities sorted out and I will not become a part of it. My responsibility is firmly as India’s coach and I am honoured to be in this position. The IPL brings a lot of opportunity in the game and it could go on to be a helping hand in many ways. But I am not really interested in following that up at this moment. My priority is the Indian team.

What will be your immediate priority when you take charge of the team?
The action begins as soon as I come back. South Africa is coming to India and there won’t be much time to regroup after the Indian team returns from Australia. I’ll spend some time meeting up with the players, though I met the core group (read: Kumble, Tendulkar, Dravid and Ganguly) in Australia. I have spoken to Anil in Adelaide and now again, so I intend to spend some time getting to know the others.

You met Kumble at a time when he was busy dousing one of the biggest controversies (in Sydney) and now again. What were your meetings about?
I’ve known Anil for long as a player and looking at the way he handled the Sydney episode gave me a good insight into the kind of individual he is. Anil showed a lot of maturity and carried his responsibility really well. He has been a great player and is turning out to be a great leader too. This is a very good sign for Indian cricket and I’m looking forward to working with him. We spoke generally of areas that we would be working on.

Have you spoken about the support staff that you will need?
I have suggested a few names to the BCCI and a decision will be taken soon.